The Incident with the Owl
by Asidian
Summary: Another experiment, another explosion, skyrocketing supplies costs... and 003 manages to spread the results. Will the shinigami be able to handle being completely honest with one another? Can Watari -fix- it? Yaoi implications. Complete!
1. Contaminations

Author's Notes: Alright. Here we go. I got a request to do something with Watari and 003, so... here it is. It's gonna be multi-part, because it was starting to get kind of long. Lemme know if everyone's IC, please? I'm used to doing just Tsuzuki and Hisoka. Everyone cross your fingers and hope I get through this... multi-parters tend to kick my inspiration down -really- quickly.  
  
Warnings? Yaoi coming up in later parts. Watari inventing weird things. Unbearably cute owls.  
  
Enjoy!  
  
===============  
The Incident With the Owl  
===============  
Chapter 1: Contaminations  
===============  
  
It was another failure. Had the explosion that shook the lab not been evidence enough, the peculiar oozing quality that the powder had acquired seemed more than determined to make up for it.   
  
With a resigned sigh, Watari rocked back on his heels to regard his newest attempt at a gender change potion. It had been supposed to remain in powder form until he added it to the appropriate chemical mixture, the combination hopefully achieving the as-yet-unattainable results, but...   
  
"Oh, well," the blonde shinigami shrugged, reaching absentmindedly to scratch 003's fluffy head. "Tomorrow's a new day, right?"   
  
Picking his way over the shattered remains of the lab equipment, Watari began the bare essentials of cleaning up after himself-- the chief was probably already having a fit because he wasn't at the meeting. And he'd been so -sure- that it would work this time, too...  
  
Using an unbroken petri dish, he scooped the remaining powder into a smaller area, turning a beaker upside down to cover the mess. From the looks of it, whatever unexpected reaction he'd caused would leave a stain on the counter-- and there wasn't time to scrub it out now. Seizing the handle of a broom that leaned perpetually against the wall-- he'd learned to keep one handy-- Watari swept a brisk path to the door.   
  
And then, lab coat still more black than white, hair straying in peculiar places from its habitual braid, the man slipped from the room and into the hallway, thoughts turned already to convincing the chief that the experiment truly -had- been worth the time it lost him. And, perhaps, the amount of pleading it would take for Tatsumi to consider funding for the destroyed equipment...  
  
Forgotten inside the lab, a small owl perched blinkingly on the leg of an overturned chair. She wasn't sure what had put her human in such a hurry, but rather resented being left behind.   
  
Fluffing herself to incredible proportions, 003 regarded the room curiously. Having been so abandoned so soon after the explosion had rattled her home, she quite considered sleeping out of the question. And so the only available option was to find something entertaining until her human returned.   
  
Cocking her head curiously, the little owl peered toward the source of said explosion. They weren't uncommon in the white room that her human was so fond of, but the mess that this one had made was larger than usual. Taking wing, 003 flapped her way to the overturned beaker and landed flat-taloned on the counter beside it.   
  
Peculiar, the way the stuff oozed its way out the bottom. Usually it stayed put.   
  
Creeping closer, the little owl considered her options. Her human might be gone for some time. And this, at least, had potential to be interesting...  
  
Pushing back any doubts-- the strange things that her human put together -never- exploded more than once-- 003 leaned in closer and nudged the beaker.  
  
***  
  
"We all agreed that Tatsumi would cook," Hisoka pointed out, standing purposefully between Tsuzuki and the stove. "It's safer that way."  
  
"But, Hisoka!" the boy's partner whined. His eyes were huge, and pleading. "I want to help!"  
  
"No." The young shinigami didn't budge.  
  
"But--!"  
  
"-No-." Hisoka fixed the man with a level-eyed stare that sent his partner stumbling back a step. "I want to survive dinner."  
  
"Technically," Watari corrected cheerfully, bustling into the room. "We all would. Not even food poisoning can phase a shinigami!"  
  
Ignoring the scientist's peculiarly enthusiastic pose, the boy frowned up at him. "That doesn't make it any better. I don't want him touching the food."  
  
"Good for you, bon," Watari enthused, reaching out to ruffle the young shinigami's hair familiarly. "Saves me the trouble." With a grin and a wink, the man was gone, carrying clean dishes from the room to better prepare the table.  
  
"You're all so mean," Tsuzuki pouted, scooping a small owl up from the counter in order to scratch under her chin. Delighted when the bird made a quiet cooing noise, the older shinigami beamed. "See-- -she- likes me."  
  
"She doesn't have to eat your cooking," Hisoka pointed out acidly, moving to regard the small ball of feathers with suspicion.   
  
"Aww, that's not fair! You should at least try my new udon recipe... you'll love it, really! I use my own--" Trailing off in mid-sentence, the violet-eyed man peered down at 003, frowning slightly. "What's this?"   
  
Switching the little owl to the other hand, he regarded the finger where she'd been perched. Pressing it experimentally to the index finger, he pulled them apart again with no small amount of curiosity. "What do you have all over your feet?"  
  
Sighing quietly and resisting the urge to wonder aloud why the owl had been in the kitchen to begin with, Hisoka moved without comment to retrieve a cloth from the sink. Fully intent on washing off the counter, the boy was caught mid-task by a voice from the doorway.  
  
"Tsuzuki-san. Kurosaki-kun." Tatsumi stood in the doorway, regarding his guests with the barest hint of a smile. It didn't look convincing; the man was still trying to decide what had possessed him to offer his house for the day's meeting. After all, if the chief had been so intent upon a change of scenery, any number of locations would have been a better choice...   
  
Suppressing a sigh, the secretary couldn't keep the command from his voice as he addressed his coworkers. "Why don't you both join the others in the dining room? I'd like to work without interference."  
  
Hisoka didn't need more prompting; the vague annoyance that the man was projecting had been making him irritable since they'd arrived. Ignoring Tsuzuki's half-finished protest, the boy steered both partner and owl from the kitchen.  
  
The cloth remained resting on the counter near the sink, unused.  
  
***  
  
The meeting was a success. Which is to say, no one fell asleep, nothing was broken, and no one complained about the food. Everyone was bored out of their minds, of course, but that was one of the expected dangers of a shinigami's line of work.  
  
When it had finished, the chief had gone with record speed, claiming other work to attend to; shortly thereafter the other members of the summoning department had begun to filter out, singly or in pairs. At long last, Terazuma had succeeded in convincing his partner that it was past time to leave, and Wakaba had followed him from the house with no small amount of reluctance.   
  
And so the small dining room was filled only with a cheerful scientist and fat little owl, the now-impatient host, a boy that was emotionally exhausted from spending too much time with too many people, and a man with dog ears, currently attempting to convince everyone present that dessert was absolutely necessary.  
  
"Tatsumi...?" the violet eyed shinigami began again, tone pleading. "Cake doesn't take very long to make..."  
  
"The food was just for the meeting," the secretary pointed out crisply. His neat handwriting spread its way onto a clean sheet of paper, carefully tallying the dinner items; had anyone cared to look, they wouldn't have been surprised that he was counting it as a company expense. "And the meeting is over." Fixing Tsuzuki with a calm blue stare, he phrased his question as more of a statement. "Don't you have work to be getting back to?"  
  
"We do." All eyes turned with surprise to Hisoka, who was standing, his frown encompassing the whole room, but mostly meant for his partner. "Let's go-- he doesn't want us here, and I have a headache." And with that, the boy made for the door.  
  
Three sets of eyes turned blinkingly after the young shinigami, fixing on the closing door.  
  
"What's with bon?" Watari asked, petting 003 idly with one hand. He didn't seem to be bothered by the fact that she'd found her way there, or even to have noticed her lack of presence until well after he'd arrived.  
  
"Dunno," Tsuzuki admitted, grabbing his trench coat from the back of his chair. "But I better see-- thanks for dinner, Tatsumi!"  
  
And with that, the violet-eyed shinigami was gone from the room as well, leaving only Watari and the rather-irritated host. Presented with an opportunity and an empty room, the scientist tried on a grin. "Hey, Tatsumi-- how's our department doing on supply funding?"  
  
For a moment, the man regarded his co-worker seriously, using the pause to adjust his glasses. "Not well enough for you to have destroyed your lab again," was the answer he decided on finally.  
  
The blonde's grin became a little more strained as he disentangled his legs from the chair in order to stand. "Well," he offered with a little laugh. "Maybe we ought to talk about this later-- after all, there's work to be done, like you said."  
  
"Indeed." Tatsumi watched curiously as the other man made a beeline for the door and flapped a quick wave. Raising his own hand in a less enthusiastic farewell, the secretary waited until the door was shut behind him before letting out the sigh that had been building up for most of the night.  
  
Alone with the dishes, Tatsumi vowed to himself never to host a meeting again.  
  
***  
  
"What a -mess-," Watari tsked, lifting up the broom from its spot near the door. "I thought I cleaned up more of it than -this-."  
  
The steady swish of bristles on the laboratory floor passed the time, and soon the man's thoughts were lost in a thousand possibilities for his next attempt-- until he came to the counter where the beaker had covered the failed experiment.   
  
Cringing slightly, the shinigami toed the broken beaker, now scattered in pieces across the floor. It made a peculiar squishing noise, surrounded as it was by the remnants of the powder-turned ooze, and Watari sighed in resignation.  
  
"It had to bubble out, didn't it?" he asked himself piteously, turning to begin a search for the dustbin.  
  
Perched once again on the overturned chair, 003 hooted softly.  
  
~end part one~ 


	2. Surfacing Effects

Author's Notes: How... did -this- happen? ^^ Uhm, suffice it to say that I didn't know where this was going, and... well, this is how it's turning out. And now, the real challenge-- am I managing to keep everyone in character... under the effects of the potion? Is that even possible? Should I stop writing this thing all together? ^^  
  
Uhm, the next chapter should happen sometime soon, provided I don't get booed or anything. Break from Watari for a bit, cause I want to focus on Tsuzuki and Hisoka for a little.  
  
Warnings? Yaoi implications starting up. Fat owls. Possible OOC.  
  
Enjoy!  
  
  
===============  
The Incident with the Owl  
===============  
Chapter 2: Surfacing Effects  
===============  
  
It was a fairly usual start to a fairly unusual day.   
  
Which is to say that Watari awoke just a few too many minutes after he should have, cramped in several places from having slept the night away in a small metal chair in his laboratory.   
  
What followed was a frantic dash to find a clean change of clothes- by some miracle, the explosion the day before had left them relatively unmarked- force his hair into a state somewhat resembling manageable, gather his clipboard and paperwork after a quick check for singe-marks, and dash out the door. Only to reach mid-hall and turn himself around to retrieve 003 from the perch where she slept peacefully on.  
  
The office, too, was in its wonted state when he arrived.   
  
Almost.  
  
The fight that Tsuzuki and Terazuma were currently engaged in was particularly nasty, and as the gathered shinigami watched with mounting interest, insults began to reach new levels of creativity. Two minutes after he'd entered the room, it had escalated to the point where Watari was considering offering bets on the amount of upcoming property damage. At which point Tatsumi intervened.  
  
"Tsuzuki-san," The secretary intoned, voice clearly disapproving. "Terazuma-san." Frowning, he peered at the two men over the rim of his glasses. "If neither of you have assignments to keep you occupied, I'm sure that I can find a better use for your time."  
  
"I can't think of anything better than teaching that idiot his place," Terazuma was quick to snap in response. "Tell him to stay out of things that aren't his business, and--"  
  
"What do you mean, 'things that aren't my business'?" The older man's eyes were flashing, anger showing in the line of his brow and the tone of his voice. "-Some- people like to be -nice- every once in a while- what's wrong with that?"  
  
Abruptly, the scientist decided that he needed more information. Edging his way to where Hisoka stood on the sidelines, frowning heavily, Watari settled himself on the desk beside the boy. "Hey, bon," he whispered in a low voice. "What'd I miss?"  
  
"Terazuma-san is jealous," the young shinigami replied simply.   
  
Blinking, the taller blonde let his gaze trail back to the scene at hand. His mind, still trying to shake itself free of sleep's influence, attempted to wrap itself around the situation. "Of -Tsuzuki-?"  
  
The boy's tone was suspiciously close to sulking. "Wakaba-san was being really touchy. You know how she is." Startled not so much by the words as Hisoka's reaction to them, the scientist stared at him hard, blinking.  
  
But Tatsumi's level voice cut off whatever other questions he'd been preparing to ask. "I will find you both extra paperwork that will be -very- much your business, unless you stop this right now. Some people are trying to work here-- I'm sure they don't appreciate the distraction."  
  
"Then tell him to keep his gods damned hands off my -partner-!" It was more of a roar than a yell, leaving every pair of eyes in the office to stare in shock at the man that now stood, panting with rage.  
  
Approaching the color of a mid-summer strawberry, Wakaba crossed the floor in record speed, catching the man by the sleeve of his shirt. "I think that's enough, Hajime-chan," she insisted, embarrassment plain in the color of her cheeks. "Why don't we talk about this outside?"   
  
Moments later, she was making for the door, fist clenched around the fabric of his shirt, dragging him along behind.  
  
A stunned silence descended onto the work room for the space of five seconds-and when it cleared, half a dozen voices started up as one, talking among themselves in low murmurs. Reaching absently to pet 003, Watari wondered exactly what the hell had just happened.  
  
"He started it," Tsuzuki mumbled defensively, wandering over to join his partner and the taller blonde. "It wasn't my fault, and now Tatsumi's mad." Pouting childishly, the man leaned over and cupped a hand over his mouth, voice a conspiratory whisper. "He's scary."   
  
A moment passed. Two.   
  
Hisoka stood, expression one of resigned martyrdom. "Let's go," he told Tsuzuki. No mention of his partner's acting like an idiot was made.   
  
They were gone a moment later, through the same door that Wakaba had chosen for her escape. Watari sat staring after them, gaping like a beached fish.   
  
***  
  
"All day," Watari clarified, golden eyes darting nervously about Tatsumi's small office. Two of his fingers were working idly at the feather's of 003's neck, and the little owl was settled and content. "Just little things, but all so -strange-. Especially one on top of another. Haven't you noticed?"  
  
From over the edge of an immaculately crisp sheet of paper, the secretary arched an eyebrow. "I've been working."  
  
"Oh. Right." Giving a nervous little laugh, the scientist relaxed in his seat, relief apparent in his features. "Good to know some things are the same."  
  
"You wanted to see me, I believe?" Deft handstrokes catalogued neat figures on the paper currently lying on the desk. "Was there a reason, or did you just come to gossip?"  
  
"Ah... right. About that." A hopeful grin spread its way onto the scientist's face as he regarded the other man. The fingers buried in the little owl's feathers worked nervously faster, and she regarded him with a single open eye, peeved. "I was so -sure- that I'd get it right this time- the gender change potion, that is- but, well, my lab is a mess, and half of my equipment's in ruins, and... how much of the supply budget is there left?"  
  
Watari blinked. -That- wasn't how he'd intended on phrasing it at all.  
  
"You're incorrigible, you know," Tatsumi told him calmly. "Worse than Tsuzuki sometimes, I'm afraid. He at least doesn't expect to destroy things. It just happens."  
  
Watari was out of his chair and protesting before his mind caught up to his mouth. "Sacrifices must be made for the sake of science!" Striking an enthusiastic pose and dumping poor 003 unceremoniously to the floor in the process, the blonde man clenched a fist and raised it high above his head. It was an inspired gesture.   
  
"Not monetary ones, I'm afraid." Not lifting his eyes from the paperwork in front of him, Tatsumi couldn't see the defeated expression on his co-worker's face.  
  
"I was afraid you'd say that." Settling himself back into the chair, Watari considered the other man, barely paying attention when 003 fluttered up from the floor to settle herself on her human's shoulder. Lost in ways to convince Tatsumi that his invention would save their department money, the scientist didn't noticed when the little owl began chewing contently on a strand of hair.  
  
"A ha! If Tsuzuki were a woman, he could threaten Terazuma into dropping whatever fight came up-- less property damage!" Jolted by her human's sudden motions, 003 made her feathers as large as possible and set into the blonde strand with more determination.  
  
Tatsumi didn't dignify the response with answer. "The owl is eating your hair," he observed instead, hiding a slight smile.  
  
Gold eyes widened fractionally, Watari craned his neck to peer down at the little bird, an amused expression flitting over his face. "Looks that way," the blonde shinigami agreed cheerfully, plucking the owl from his shoulder and depositing her on Tatsumi's desk.   
  
Out of habit, long fingers reached to untie the bow that held his hair back. It would be impossible to force a single strand into place-- from experience, he knew that the only hope was to rake it all back into the tie again. Shaking his hair loose, Watari tsked as he struggled to push it into some semblance of order.  
  
"You should leave your hair down more often," the secretary observed, gaze no longer on his calculations. "It becomes you."  
  
The world lurched peculiarly to a stop. "Eh?"   
  
Tatsumi's blue eyes held an expression that was nearly as stunned as Watari felt. The scientist stared with strange fascination as the other man scrambled to cover up the words. "That is to say, it's a change from the usual. You understand."  
  
"Right," Watari agreed- or tried to. "Not really," were the words that left his mouth, and instantly the scientist was kicking himself for not letting the comment go by without remark.  
  
The clarification sent the icy waters of shock spilling over him for the second time in as many minutes. "Your hair is lovely," the secretary told him calmly-- and an instant later, utter mortification registered in the man's features.  
  
The scientist fled the office, face close to matching the shade that Wakaba had achieved earlier.  
  
Cocking her head curiously from her perch atop Tatsumi's desk, the owl began to preen.  
  
~end part two~ 


	3. Epiphanies

Author's Notes: Ah, it seems that work -is- good for something. I planned out some of a fic that I had -no- idea what to do with. This is the resulting insanity. I apologize for it. In fact, if I hadn't written it, I would attempt to claim that it isn't my fault. Alas, it cannot be so. ^^  
  
Warnings? Yaoi implications. Less owls than the previous chapters. ;_; Finished at five in the morning. Like, stayed-up-all-night five in the morning.   
  
Be afraid-- I know I am.  
  
===============  
The Incident with the Owl  
===============  
Chapter 3: Epiphanies  
===============  
  
Paperwork was proving to be difficult.   
  
Not that it was generally something he enjoyed-- on the contrary, it was fairly often that Watari got distracted from the more mundane aspects of his job. Today, however, strange things were taking place all around, and gossip was running freely.   
  
Or at very least, it was running freely outside the door to his office. Despite his best intentions not to eavesdrop, he'd heard most of the conversation that had been going on for the past half hour-- and Yuma and Saya certainly seemed to be keeping tabs on everyone who'd been affected.   
  
As near as the scientist could tell, no one had escaped whatever insanity had descended into their workplace.  
  
"...I've never -seen- Wakaba-chan so happy, and that's saying a lot." Saya's voice was glowing with joy for the girl.   
  
Yuma joined in, tone more speculative. "What they need to do is work out a way around his transformations and take a few days off at a nice hotel--"  
  
Fighting the flush the rose to his cheeks, Watari focused on the paper in front of him. The day's date became an overlarge scrawl. Frowning, the scientist scratched it out-- Tatsumi would complain if it was sloppy.  
  
"And Tatsumi-san!" one of the girls was saying. The name echoing in his thoughts started the man into awareness of their words once more, and he couldn't help but listen. "He's just been wandering around. It's so -strange-."  
  
"With Watari-san's owl!" her partner agreed. "I don't even know if he realizes it's there-- he seems so... so... not like himself!"  
  
Frowning slightly, the blonde shinigami attempted to focus on filling out the forms spread on the desk before him. There certainly were a lot of them. With everyone acting so strangely, now would be the perfect time to catch up. As an added bonus, Watari reflected cheerfully, he could keep out of the rising tide of insanity beyond the walls.  
  
"...Hisoka-kun did -not- need to say that," Yuma was consoling. "He's been in an awful mood since the meeting yesterday-- don't pay any attention to it."  
  
"He's too cute to stay mad at," Saya gushed. And then came a pause, as though the girl was considering. "But do you think he meant it? I mean, truly. Honestly."  
  
The revelation came down with the force of a collapsing building.   
  
Before the implications could turn themselves over in his mind, the scientist was on his feet, propelling himself out the door and grasping the startled girl by the shoulders. "You're a genius!" he proclaimed.  
  
And then he was tearing down the hall, two young shinigami staring after him in utter confusion.  
  
***  
  
"Tsuzuki!"   
  
The scientist flung the door to the office open and was greeted immediately by two very startled pairs of eyes, one green and one violet. For a moment Watari stood in the doorway, panting and out of breath-- he never remembered to teleport when he needed the ability most-- posed in the most dramatic way he could conceive.  
  
"Questions," he managed, when he could speak. "I want to ask you questions."  
  
The older shinigami stared at him for a long moment, blinking. "About what?"  
  
"Just questions!" Letting himself into the little room, Watari settled onto a chair, backwards. Golden eyes glowed with excitement; the puzzle was falling into place. "Are you ready?"  
  
"I... guess." The two partners were staring at him as though he'd grown an extra appendage. Which was, he reflected, probably justified.   
  
"Are there better things than cake?"  
  
A startled pause. "Of course."  
  
"Do you have nightmares? Often?"  
  
He could read the change of emotions in expressive violet eyes: surprise, hesitation, the beginning of anger. Hisoka moved a few steps away from his partner, needing the distance to keep his feelings his own.  
  
It was an answer the man didn't want to give. "...yes."  
  
"What about bon?" Tact was a thing to be discarded in the noble pursuit of science. "Do you dream about -him-?"  
  
Tsuzuki opened his mouth. Closed it. Blushed furiously, but couldn't stop the reply. "All the time."  
  
If his partner was blushing, Hisoka was -creating- new shades of red. "Just what the hell do you think you're--" the boy began, but Watari was quick to cut him off.  
  
"The truth!" The scientist had reached a frenzy of understanding. "Don't you see it? Look at everyone! They're telling the truth, plain and simple, the way they see it! Everyone is being honest, for good or bad!"  
  
They were looking at him like he'd gone insane. Watari didn't care; he was right, and Tsuzuki had answered the questions, and that was proof enough to set any doubts aside.  
  
Hisoka was the first to recover from his state of semi-shock. "Why?" he asked. And then, thinking the question over: "-How-?"  
  
"That," the taller blonde admitted. "I don't know. It started yesterday, though. Or seems to have."  
  
"That's right!" Smacking a fist into his palm, Tsuzuki turned huge eyes to the boy beside him. "You were being -really- mean last night after dinner-- and when I asked what was wrong, you -told- me!" The man looked like he'd seen the clouds open up and sunshine spill forth.  
  
Hisoka spared his partner a sidelong glance, but once more the accusation of stupidity was missing. "Whatever," he opted for instead. Green eyes searched Watari's face. "So how do we find out how this happened?"  
  
"Well," the scientist considered. "It seems to have affected the whole department." He rubbed his chin, thoughts scattering and returning, struggling to piece the mystery together. "So whatever it was, logic would suggest that it needed to happen while everyone was in one place.  
  
"The meeting at Tatsumi's house!" Tsuzuki was catching on, violet eyes bright. His tail thrashed from side to side, almost violently, anger forgotten in the passion of the moment.  
  
Hisoka had remained silent for a time, green eyes growing steadily wider as something began to take shape in his mind. It was not a pleasant idea. It was highly unlikely. It... would explain absolutely everything.   
  
"The owl," the young shinigami sighed in resignation.  
  
"Bon?" Cocking his head to one side, Watari considered the boy with rapt attention.  
  
"Before dinner," Hisoka elaborated. "She had something on her feet-- she must have gotten it onto the counter."  
  
"And into the food," the scientist breathed, golden eyes huge. "Gods... it must have been something from my lab! Do... do you two have any idea what this means?" When it was clear that his audience would remain frozen, waiting for the answer, Watari leaned in closer. The chair rocked dangerously on two legs as the blonde clenched a fist tight, making his decree. "I've created a truth serum!"  
  
The response he got was far less enthusiastic than what he thought he deserved. It involved a few seconds of apprehensive staring, and after a few moments of unresponsive silence, Hisoka's quiet voice: "Can you -fix- it?"  
  
"Of course," was the reply on the tip of Watari's tongue. The potion changed it a bit, though, and the reassurance in his smile was forced to make up for the rest. "I can try," he said sincerely.  
  
"Aww," Tsuzuki pouted. "What's wrong with telling the truth? Nothing that bad's happened."  
  
Watari didn't get a chance to answer. Hisoka did it for him.  
  
"Think about it," the boy told his partner, tone matter-of-fact. "Just like you didn't want to answer Watari-san, other people don't want to talk about certain things." Green eyes were watching the older man carefully, waiting for understanding to spark in the emotions that he was giving off. "Like Terazuma-san didn't want to get so upset over Wakaba. And like I don't want to say that I love you."   
  
Utter, deafening silence. Not a stir of breath.   
  
Hisoka looked like someone had struck him; pale and shocked, mouth open slightly.   
  
"Well!" The scientist shot abruptly to his feet, backing toward the door. "Looks like I ought to get started on the antidote."  
  
Slipping into the hallway, Watari wisely made himself scarce.  
  
~end part three~ 


	4. Solutions

Author's Notes: Finished! Finally done! This is the last part, folks... thank you all so very, very much for reviewing. As I type this even now, this story has the most reviews I've ever received for -anything- on ff.net. You're all so good to me! *heart*  
  
Incidentally, I have no -idea- what my next fic will be. Requests are appreciated. ^_^  
  
Warnings? Yaoi! 003 being cute and fat.  
  
Enjoy! ^_^  
  
===============  
The Incident with the Owl  
===============  
Chapter 4: Solutions  
===============  
  
Yuma and Saya certainly hadn't been mistaken. For whatever reason, the secretary still had 003 with him; a small ball of fluff settled comfortably on one shoulder was hard to miss, even at the far end of the hall.  
  
It was not for the owl, however, that Watari rushed to catch up with his co-worker.   
  
"Tatsumi-san!" Waving one hand wildly over his head, the scientist ignored the curious gazes that turned his way. "Tatsumi-san," he called again, less loudly but more urgently, as he slowed to a stop. "I need to talk to you." His voice dropped to a whisper, eyes dancing with the excitement of understanding. "I know what's going on-- I know why everyone's acting so strangely."  
  
"Oh?" Raising an eyebrow, the secretary turned to regard him with a steady blue gaze.   
  
"Your office," the scientist insisted, snagging the other man by one arm and hauling him toward the door. A moment later, the wall stood between them and the steady stream of chatter that had become common in the halls.   
  
"The truth!" Watari told him, expression animated. "The chief ought to know-- not the truth, that is-- well, the truth, but that that's the problem." His mouth was going faster than his mind could keep up with, but it didn't matter; things were starting to fall into place, and all that was left was to put everything back to how it had been. "Last night, when we had the meeting at your house," the blonde shinigami insisted. "003 was on the counter, and she had something on her feet. It had to have been from my lab, it had to have been the potion I was working on." A thought struck him, and he added it excitedly to the rest of the stream of words, grinning wildly. "She must have knocked it over-- I didn't think it should have had the strength to bubble out, and that must have been--"  
  
"Watari-san." The calm voice sliced neatly through the explanation. "What -happened-?"  
  
"I made a truth serum!" the scientist exclaimed. "A truth serum, and everyone's affected. I tested the theory on Tsuzuki, and then Hisoka-- well, that's not important. I can worry about that once everything's fixed. What -is- important is that--" Abruptly, the blonde's words came to a crashing halt, and he stared with wide golden eyes at the man in front of him.   
  
"Holy gods!" he breathed. "That means what you said before, about--"  
  
But before he could finish, Tatsumi had removed a very soft, very disgruntled looking bird from his shoulder, settling her gently in both of the scientist's hands. "I held onto her for you," the secretary told him, with a smile that seemed completely out of place on his usually stern face. "I'd hoped you would come looking for her sooner."  
  
Watari's mouth worked, but words seemed to be having a difficulty leaving. "Oh." He wondered if the other man realized that he'd never broken the contact after handing over the little owl. "Thanks."  
  
As though sensing where the scientist's thoughts had wandered, Tatsumi drew away, coughing nervously and reaching to adjust his glasses. "Your invention would explain quite a bit," the man agreed after a long moment. "I'll see to it that the chief is informed, and that everyone's made aware of the situation." A slight hesitation. "But can it be reversed?"  
  
The potion's effects made Watari consider before answering. "I don't see why I wouldn't be able to. I kept notes while I was making it, after all." Brightening considerably, the blonde shinigami gained confidence as he continued to speak. "And I know the way to neutralize the chemicals that I used in the powder-- the rest was a formula that I'm really familiar with. It didn't actually take very long to -create-, so in theory, reversing it shouldn't be much of a problem!"  
  
"In theory," the secretary noted, attempting to hide a smirk. "But... do you think you can manage it -before- everyone kills each other?"  
  
"If I start now!" Forgetting momentarily about the fact that 003 still sat cupped between his hands, Watari attempted to raise one fist in a gesture of dedication. Instead, the little owl was knocked off balance-- she almost hit the floor again, but caught herself at the last possible moment, flapping her way to perch on her human's shoulder.   
  
"Of course. Then you'd better start on it, hadn't you?" Watching with amused eyes, Tatsumi offered a polite nod.   
  
"Right!" Watari turned toward the door, face glowing with the prospect of conquering this newest challenge. The secretary's voice caught him mid-step, hand on the doorknob.  
  
"There is one more thing, before you go." The tone was even, businesslike.   
  
"Huh?"   
  
Turning to face the other man, Watari discovered abruptly that his co-worker had closed the few steps between them. He was left staring into blue eyes that were less than a hand's breadth from his own-- and then the secretary was pulling him closer.  
  
The kiss was deep, and thorough, and matter-of-fact. It was, Watari thought, exactly what he would have expected from the other man, had he given the matter previous thought. Which he hadn't. Often, in any case.   
  
Pondering the implications of whether the potion could cause honest actions-- or reactions, as the case may be-- the scientist found himself leaning into the touch, snaking his arms around Tatsumi's waist. He was only vaguely aware of the man's hands in his hair, pulling the bow lose, of the blonde strands falling around his face. Something in the back of his mind registered that 003 had taken flight, abandoning the perch that the secretary's arms now occupied.   
  
It was only when Tatsumi pulled away that he realized he'd succeeded in undoing the man's tie. He felt the flush creeping its way up his cheeks, and for the moment, didn't care. Taking two deep breaths to steady himself, Watari offered the most honest thing he could think to say:  
  
"The antidote can wait."  
  
***  
  
Notes still semi-charred from the abuse of the last explosion lay splayed across the tables. A set of cooking spoons rested on the counter, attempting to substitute for missing equipment. From her perch atop an empty beaker, a small owl watched the goings-on with sleepy curiosity.   
  
And, closer to dawn than sunset, one -very- happy scientist let out a shout that woke several of his neighbors. "-Finished-!"  
  
***  
  
It was a fairly unusual start to a fairly usual day.  
  
Which is to say that the office was still rife with the buzz of conversation fully two hours after Watari arrived, and no work was being done. Terazuma and Wakaba were conspicuously absent; so were Tsuzuki and Hisoka. Both couples had arrived on time, only to find their way from the office a short while later. It was, the scientist supposed, the best sign that could be hoped for.  
  
Wherever the chief had found himself while dealing with the steadily growing insanity, the blonde shinigami hadn't run across him. And so his report remained unshared. Smiling to himself, the man helped himself to a cup of coffee and reached absently to scratch 003 under her fluffy chin.  
  
"Watari." It was Tatsumi's voice, level and unrevealing-- but the blonde took silent pride in the fact that the honorific had fallen from the end of his name.  
  
An already pleased grin crept minutely wider as he turned to face the secretary. "Good morning," he greeted, spirits soaring. "You look... well today." His eyes trailing down the other man's form were enough to make Tatsumi shift uncomfortably, but when he added the wink, it earned the slightest hint of a blush.  
  
"As do you." The heat in the depths of blue eyes flickered past in a moment and was gone, lost in the concern for office matters. "But... how did the experiments go? What about the antidote?"  
  
"Finished," the blonde conceded. "And tested." His grin was wide, and monumentally triumphant; on the man's shoulder, 003 had ruffled her feathers so that she appeared twice her actual size. "No explosion. No chemical residue. No discernable side effects."  
  
"Incredible!" Tatsumi exclaimed, and the scientist couldn't stop the flush of pleasure that the compliment brought. "We should tell the chief right away-- you can begin administering it immediately!"  
  
Golden eyes laughed silently, teasing, and Watari caught his lover by the arm before he could turn away. "I slipped it into the coffee pot this morning. Everyone here's taken it already." Ignoring the shocked look that he was receiving, the scientist grinned more broadly. "But isn't it more fun if we don't tell them?"  
  
~owari~ 


End file.
